NATO member warns of WWIII if Ukraine joins bloc

Ukrainian accession into NATO would result in World War III, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has warned. Slovakia, a fellow-member of the US-led military bloc, previously vowed to stonewall Kiev’s candidacy over fears of a conflict with Russia.

Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum on Thursday, Szijjarto stated that “Ukraine is at war with Russia. Due to the traditional NATO stance, should Ukraine be brought into the alliance under current circumstances, it would mean the start of World War III.”

“We have always stood against direct confrontation between Russia and NATO,” the Hungarian diplomat added, as quoted by Russian media.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico made similar remarks last week, insisting his government will “never agree to Ukraine’s membership in NATO” due to the threat of a world war posed by such a move.

Both nations have dissented from Western policy, spearheaded by US President Joe Biden, of sending arms and funds to Kiev for “as long as it takes” to defeat Russia.

NATO pledged to bring Ukraine into the fold in 2008, ignoring Russian warnings that it considers the proposal a major threat to its national security. The Ukraine conflict, which erupted in February 2022, was triggered to a large degree by the military bloc’s efforts to absorb Kiev, according to Russian officials.

With Moscow currently making gains on the battlefield, some Western media outlets and officials have suggested that Kiev should concede territorial losses to Moscow in exchange for security guarantees.

Ukraine has repeatedly rejected anything short of returning to its 1991 borders, which Russia considers delusional. Moscow has demanded that Kiev recognize the loss of five regions which have joined Russia, and pledge to remain militarily neutral as conditions for a truce.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently told Newsweek magazine that Moscow is seeking a resolution that will address core causes of the conflict, accusing Kiev and its Western backers as being unwilling to do this.

“At present, as far as we can see, restoring peace is not part of our adversary’s plan,” Lavrov said. “Washington and its NATO allies provide political, military, and financial support to Kiev so that the war would go on.”